Sopitas
on Dec 12, 2023, Updated Jul 19, 2024
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This quick and easy Sopitas recipe is perfect for any chilly weeknight. With only a few ingredients and simple spices, you will have a tasty, comforting, and warm bowl of soup ready to eat quickly!
This traditional Spanish soup typically includes browned pasta, a savory broth, and sweet tomato sauce. This dish can be served as a main dish but is more commonly served as a side. In fact, “sopita” translates to little soup. The simplicity of this dish has made it incredibly popular over the years and sustained its longevity in the world of cooking.
If you like soup, you will love my easy-to-make sopita! The pasta shells in this tomato-based soup have a rich, earthy flavor, which is complemented by the savory flavor of chicken bouillon powder. You will love how the crumbled queso fresco brings this dish together.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s a warm and cozy comfort food!
- Simple but full of flavor!
- Comes together quickly for a nice side or main dish!
Recipe Ingredients
- Pasta – I use a small shell pasta
- Olive oil
- Seasonings – dried minced onion, garlic powder
- Chicken bouillon powder
- Tomato sauce
- Queso fresco
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Sopitas
Step 1: Heat the oil in a large pot. Add the pasta shells and cook until about half of them are browned.
Step 2: Stir in the minced onion, garlic powder, and bouillon powder until the spices have evenly coated the pasta shells.
Step 3: Add the water and tomato sauce. Stir to combine, and then bring the mixture to a boil.
Step 4: Once the soup is boiling, cover it with a lid and reduce the heat to a simmer. Top with the crumbled cheese, serve, and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
If you want to add a little extra creaminess to your soup, add a few tablespoons of cream cheese or about ¼ cups of heavy whipping cream after your sopita finishes cooking. Both of these options will add a nice, rich creaminess to your soup.
If you have never browned your pasta before cooking, you might find this step a little bit strange. The main reason to brown the pasta first is to add a slight nuttiness, which will, in turn, give your pasta more flavor and texture.
These two types of cheeses are very similar in texture and are typically used interchangeably. They both have a crumbly texture and don’t melt easily. The biggest difference is that cotija cheese has a slightly stronger taste. Keep that in mind when substituting these cheeses, but if you can’t find queso fresco for this recipe, cotija will work great!
Expert Tips
- Be careful not to burn your pasta shells when browning them in olive oil! To avoid this, stir the pasta regularly.
- If you use fresh garlic instead of garlic powder, mince 3 cloves and add them to the pot and your pasta shells to release the flavor!
- If you cannot find queso fresco or cotija cheese at your local grocery store, you can use Parmesan cheese! These cheeses are very similar, but Parmesan cheese has a slightly sharper flavor. It will still taste delicious on top of your soup!
- This recipe works with small or medium pasta shells. If you have a different pasta shape, you can use that in a pinch. Whatever you use, you will want about 2 – 2 ½ cups of uncooked noodles!
How to Serve Sopitas
Sopitas is usually served as a side dish to bring a meal together or as a first-course meal. My favorite guacamole, refried beans or chicken tostada, tastes great with sopitas.
However you choose to serve it, you can add many garnishes along with the queso fresco cheese. I love to slice an avocado to put in the soup, squeeze a little bit of lime juice on top for added zest, or chop some fresh cilantro and sprinkle it in and serve.
There are many ingredients that go wonderfully in this soup, so feel free to play around with it!
More Soup Recipes To Consider
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The Best Instant Pot Broccoli and Cheese Soup
Healthy Living
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Soups, Stews & Chowders
Classic Minestrone Soup
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Sopitas
Ingredients
- 2 cups small shell pasta, uncooked
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried minced onion
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 3 cups water
- 1/2 cup queso fresco, crumbled
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Once the oil is heated, add the pasta shell and cook them for about 5 minutes, or until about half the shells have browned.
- Stir in the minced onion, garlic powder, and bouillon powder until the spices evenly coat the pasta shells.
- Add the water and tomato sauce. Stir to combine and then bring the mixture to a boil. Once the soup is boiling, cover it with a lid and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Allow the soup to simmer for 20 minutes.
- Top with the crumbled cheese, serve, and enjoy!
Notes
- If you cannot find queso fresco or cojita cheese at your local grocery store then you can use Parmesan cheese. The two cheeses are very similar, but Parmesan cheese has a slightly sharper flavor.
- You want to be careful not to burn your pasta shells. To avoid this, stir your pasta regularly.
- You can also top this soup with some fresh cilantro or a squeeze of lime juice.
- Store your leftover Sopitas in this fridge for up to 5 days and reheat a serving in the microwave. Start with 45 seconds, stir, and as 40 seconds as needed to fully reheat the soup.
Made this recipe just like it advised and was most pleased. Will do it again. Thank you.